Getting Unstuck

I’VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR 1 YEAR!

I started this newsletter on a trip to the coast in June 2023.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I would keep it up. I thought I might run out of valuable tips to share or things to say. But I’m happy to report that that has not been the case. And I hope you feel the same.

That said, I’d love to know what’s been helpful/fun/worthwhile to read on your end. If you have any questions, requests, or feedback, please hit “reply” to this email and let me know what you’re thinking! (You can also just say hi!)

WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE?

This is something I ask myself daily. My dog/nemesis is doing nothing to help the matter. He keeps wanting to go on walks and snuggle in my lap and look at me with puppy dog eyes. I mean, how obnoxious is that?

I wrapped up a workshop I took at Tin House on character development at the end of June, and it’s really inspired me to slow down a little bit in my current WIP. Going slow is not in my comfort zone, but I think the writing is better.

Currently, the rewrite of the WIP I’m calling my “Time Loop book” is sitting just shy of 18K words. I’m waiting for feedback from my agent on a revised outline, and I’m hopeful her feedback will inspire me to keep on keeping on.

Finally, since I feel most comfortable in my “perpetual student” era, I’ve registered for Nina LaCour’s Slow Novel Lab. I’m excited to see how this new approach to writing might color my own prose. I have a fresh baby idea for something that I’m bringing to the classes. It might be a short story, it might become a novel—or might just remain an idea I play around with. Who knows? I actually love this phase of writing, where everything feels possible.

WHEN YOU’RE STUCK

I hate feeling stuck in my writing. I do so much work to make sure I can set aside writing time, and then when I sit down and can’t produce, it can feel like a failure of a day.

There are so many other ways to “do writing” without putting words down on paper. But sometimes, you just really want to put words down on the freaking paper, right?

While I’ve never been one for writing prompts, I’ve recently come around to the idea. And the time I’ve found them most helpful is when I’m feeling a bit stuck. So I wanted to share a prompt with you all in the hopes that maybe it would help you too!

BACKLIST BOOK CLUB

Summer reading, for me, is best when it’s light enough that I don’t dwell on it, but compelling enough that I can’t wait to read more. That’s exactly what Just One Damned Thing After Another is.

Max and her compatriots in the institute for historical research fight travel back in time to preserve historical records. Between saving scrolls from the fire at the library in Alexandria and fighting actual living dinosaurs, they run into privatized relic hunters. As things keep going from bad to worse, Max realizes there’s never a dull moment when time travel is involved. (Can we please get a slow clap for that title?)

That’s it for now! I’ll be back next month with updates on my own projects! Until then…